Pickups For Lpg Conversion

[zzSleepyJohn]

With an eye on being as economical and green as practical, I'm thinking of going in for a 3 or 4 year old petrol pickup and converting it to LPG.

Ideally, I'd have preferred a new NGV pickup but up here in Chiangrai, due to lack of any NGV stations, I'm afraid that can only be a dream for several years yet, and meanwhile our battered 13 year old Isuzu 2L 4WD, although it still does over 15kms/litre on a straight run, is sadly due for replacement.

So I'm looking for any words of wisdom any of you can offer about buying a second-hand petrol pickup and getting it converted to LPG. There doesn't seem to be much available around here in Chiangrai, but I heard from the Thai family that there are plenty in Bangkok. Apart from the fact that Bangkok's a big city, I'm not sure why that should be so, though.

Our old diesel Isuzu gets us around at about 2 baht/km, and my aim would be to halve that with LPG at 9 baht/litre and say 10kms on a litre of gas. Does this sound realistic?

What new petrol pickups were on the market 3 or 4 years ago? Can anyone recommend?

[nakhonsi sean]

It is generally not possible to convert diesel engines to LPG/NGV. While some bus and truck companies do it, it is extreemly expensive. I remember in the UK it cost me 1200 Pounds to convert my V8 Land Rover, a diesel was 10,000 -15,000! You will have to lookout for a rare 2.7 litre V6 petrol Toyota Vigo if you want a pickup with LPG.

[zzSleepyJohn]

It is generally not possible to convert diesel engines to LPG/NGV. While some bus and truck companies do it, it is extreemly expensive. I remember in the UK it cost me 1200 Pounds to convert my V8 Land Rover, a diesel was 10,000 -15,000! You will have to lookout for a rare 2.7 litre V6 petrol Toyota Vigo if you want a pickup with LPG.

Thanks nakhonsi sean. Are you saying that Toyota Vigo was the only petrol pickup being sold new here 3 or 4 years ago? Didn't Nissan or Mitsubishi or any of the others sell petrol pickups at that time? If not, how many years back would you have to go? As you may gather, I'm not a really ardent follower on the motoring market!

[Japhrodisiac]

It is generally not possible to convert diesel engines to LPG/NGV. While some bus and truck companies do it, it is extreemly expensive. I remember in the UK it cost me 1200 Pounds to convert my V8 Land Rover, a diesel was 10,000 -15,000! You will have to lookout for a rare 2.7 litre V6 petrol Toyota Vigo if you want a pickup with LPG.

I may be mistaken but I thought that Nissan had some petrol pickups as well up to about 2002-2003?

[flupke]

i am also interested in this subject , what should this conversion from petrol ( not diesel ! ) to LPG installation cost ?

in europe with the new regulations it cost around 3000 euro

if this is the case in thailand , which i doubt , then it is not interesting only if you can buy the petrol vehicle cheap , because i am afraid the resale value doesn ' t go up much

[nakhonsi sean]

zzSleepyJohn Posted Today, 2007-05-24 15:46:27

Thanks nakhonsi sean. Are you saying that Toyota Vigo was the only petrol pickup being sold new here 3 or 4 years ago? Didn't Nissan or Mitsubishi or any of the others sell petrol pickups at that time? If not, how many years back would you have to go? As you may gather, I'm not a really ardent follower on the motoring market!

As far as I know it has been many years since anyone apart from Toyota has sold a petrol pickup. (Could be wrong) I believe the Vigo 2.7 has been out about 2 years. The earliest I can see for sale are 95 models, about B490,000 for the extended cab versions.

flupke Posted Today, 2007-05-24 16:21:35

i am also interested in this subject , what should this conversion from petrol ( not diesel ! ) to LPG installation cost ?

in europe with the new regulations it cost around 3000 euro

if this is the case in thailand , which i doubt , then it is not interesting only if you can buy the petrol vehicle cheap , because i am afraid the resale value doesn ' t go up much

I understand that here the conversion ranges from about B20,000 up. For the sake of safety I would only buy a CE rated tank. I have seen several cars with cooking gas bottles in the boot, bomb waiting to happen! A proper tank is extreemly strong, safer than a regular car petrol tank. The other thing to look for is the method of delivery and vapourisation of the fuel to the engine. Mechanical systems are fine but you loose a bit of power and economy. Electronic ones you hardly notice the difference between petrol and LPG.

I found my Land Rover, 1986 110 V8, much nicer to drive on LPG than petrol. The engine was quieter, smoother and more responsive. Also, after the first couple of oil changes the oil was still clean after 10,000 miles. There are far fewer impurities in LPG than in petrol, very good for the engine!

[lingling]

Regarding NGV conversion - what are the requirements for the vehicle? Has anyone here done it with a Honda CRV? Any experiences/advice to share?

[madjbs]

Nissan made a petrol pickup up till about 2002. Look at the adds on one2car etc.. and if its a nissan with a 2.4l engine then it will be a petrol one. There is not many of them about though. The only other one I can think of is the nissan nv which is probably not what you are looking for.

[geoffphuket]

Nissan made a petrol pickup up till about 2002. Look at the adds on one2car etc.. and if its a nissan with a 2.4l engine then it will be a petrol one. There is not many of them about though. The only other one I can think of is the nissan nv which is probably not what you are looking for.

What about the Nissan NV pickup - that's still in Production.

[madjbs]

Read my post again.... Actually Nissan NV stopped production around 2004 I think. You can get a good second hand one for 200000 baht now though.

Edited May 24, 2007 by madjbs

[JAS21]

Nissan made a petrol pickup up till about 2002. Look at the adds on one2car etc.. and if its a nissan with a 2.4l engine then it will be a petrol one. There is not many of them about though. The only other one I can think of is the nissan nv which is probably not what you are looking for.

What about the Nissan NV pickup - that's still in Production.

Just a point..you need to tell the licencing authority that you have converted and get the car MOT'd (sort of)..also your insurance company..we had to change companys as they refused to insure our car after conversion. It was a proper conversion..safety tank etc.

Yes the oil stays cleaner but the engine runs hotter so best to use a better quality oil.

[chanchao]

Mazda, Ford, Mitsubishi and Isuzu *NEVER* had petrol pick-ups in recent history. (Exceptioin is the Mazda Familia, but like the Nissan NV I struggle to call that an option.. )

Nissan did on the Big M model, which is a while now. Not sure if they also had it on the previous (or even current) model.

Toyota offers petrol on the Fortuner... Also on their Vigo truck?

Edited May 25, 2007 by chanchao